The present invention relates to improvements in a tape counter for displaying a tape traveling in a tape recorder or a tape player with two or more tape traveling speeds.
Generally, a tape recorder is provided with a tape counter for displaying an amount of tape traveling or a tape traveling position. The tape counter is generally classified into two types: one for counting pulses proportional to a rotating speed of a tape reel and the other for counting pulses proportional to a rotating speed of a roller provided on a tape traveling path and rotated with the tape traveling.
When a known tape counter is used for a standardized tape recorder of the multispeed type such as a microcassette recorder, the following disadvantages arise. Let us consider a tape counter which displays "600" when a C-60 type cassette tape, for example, is driven for 30 minutes at a 2.4 cm/s tape traveling speed. When the tape is traveled for 30 minutes at a 1.2 cm/s tape traveling speed, the amount of the tape traveling is half that in the case of the 2.4 cm/s tape traveling speed and therefore the counter displays "300." Accordingly, a resolution of the counter is 600/30=20 (counts/min) at 2.4 cm/s, while it is 300/30=10 (counts/min.) at 1.2 cm/s. Thus, the counter resolution is changed by a factor of two for the same recording time. This fact is inconvenient in practical use. That is, it is desirable that the resolution should be invariable for any different tape traveling speeds.